Another Stolen Relic
by LunashiranaRavyn
Summary: Rose let the dagger tumble to the floor, almost in slow motion. The blood trickled down her shirt. Her lower lip quivered as she tumbled to the floor. Loki stared at her with wide eyes. She closed her eyes, and for the first time, she slept peacefully. Rated T just in case
1. Chapter 1

Rose walked up the sidewalk, heading towards Stark Tower. Her hands were clamming up and she was sweating. This is my first big prank, _I can't botch this one up_, she told herself. As she walked into the tower, she fingered the little button in her pocket. When the AI asked her who she was, she pressed the button to deactivate him. Hairs stood up on the back of her neck and she whipped around, expecting to find someone standing there. Seeing no one, she turned and continued. As she entered the elevator, she let out a sigh of relief. She was halfway through. She climbed up the stairs, half expecting police officers to jump out. None came. She was glad that she took her meds before this.

When she reached the floor she knew held Tony Stark's precious suit, She held her breath. When she pushed open the door, the guy who tried to take over New York was standing there. Vaguely wondering why he wasn't in handcuffs, she feigned shrugging past him only to turn around and hit his calf. It brought him to his knees. She turned around and kicked him where the sun don't shine. He crumpled to the floor, moaning.

"That, was for New York" She said, pulling her shades off and spitting on him. She looked at the cameras, wanting them to get a good look at her. She told herself she didn't have anything else to live for anyway.

She made her way to the back of the room where the suits were. She opened the closest one, pushing the reset button that was behind the panel, walking away . It would take a while. She walked to the bathroom pulling the dye out of her pocket. She grabbed the shampoo and put a few drops of green dye in it, shaking it up.

"Miss Rose, the reset is complete." The suit said. Great, now I can get out of here, she thought. As she was getting into the suit, She noticed a glass display case. Inside was her family heirloom, a bow carved out of ivory. She smashed the glass, grabbing the arrows along with the bow.

"Give it back to me' my ass" She said to herself. She entered the suit, the metal closing around her. She hated small spaces, and this is certainly a small space. The bow barely fit inside the suit alone, with her being inside made it even tighter. Loki was slowly getting up, staring at her with wide eyes.

"Toodles" She waved my iron clad fingers at him. Still nervous, Her feet slowly lifted off the ground, testing the balance of the jet propulsion. Getting used to it took a minute, but once she did, she went to the roof. She arranged the suit in the famous 'Thinker' pose and stuck her namesake in its hand.

"Shit….. I didn't think this one through" Rose muttered to the empty air. She closed her eyes, recalling something her grandmother taught her,

"Whenever you're in a situation where you don't want to hurt anyone, or be hurt say these words: Fem Zii Gron" The words echoed in her mind. Her grandmother's form had faded out of existence, a ghostly mist in her place.

"FEM ZII GRON" She shouted. Doubts kept running through her head and she second guessed herself. Rose watched in wonder and horror as ghostly mist rolled off of her hand. Grabbing the bow and arrows she stood at the edge of the roof staring down at the ground far below. Voices approached the roof.

"Stop!" One of the men shouted as he approached the ghostly figure.

"I don't have anything to live for, Right?" She jumped, flipping through the air. She bit the inside of her cheek, bracing herself for impact. All feelings of falling were lost as she gently drifted down. When she opened her eyes, a crowd was gathered around her.

"Let's all give a round of applause to Tony Stark's latest prank" Rose shouted to the crowd. The all applauded, with amazed looks on their faces. She walked off, fading into the crowd.

When she got home, Rose flicked through the channels. Her face was all over the news, the girl who jumped off the Avengers tower. The name Avengers tower didn't sit well with her. I mean having all six avengers live together? Not her idea of fun. Bored and hungry, she popped some chicken nuggets in the oven and sat down on the computer. She wanted to see their reactions to what happened. She ran the self-created program to hack JARVIS. She watched the footage nibbling on the chicken nuggets.

She walked out the back door, locking it behind her. When she turned around, a man in hoodie was approaching her. She lifted her hands in defense only to feel a gloved hand wrap around her mouth. She was roughly blindfolded and gagged. She felt metal clasp her hands, preventing her from fighting back. He head made contact with the wooden door, the lock breaking. The rough hands jostled her through the doorway. Feeling completely vulnerable was something that hadn't happened to her in a while.

The blindfold was torn off and she found herself in her living room. The gritty tile dug into her knees leaving man pushed his hoodie back, revealing yellow eyes and peeling skin. His face was covered in peeling black scales. His face was one of the monsters you think about before you go to bed. She let loose a scream through her gag, but it came out like a moan.

* * *

He watched the footage again, outraged. How could a mortal, a girl one at that, bring him to his knees!? Her eyes had made him falter. Those eyes had bored into him at one point. One of them was a bright blue, the other, hunter green. He struggled to remember where he had seen them before.

"Always the tower, Why the tower!" Tony yelled at the group.

"Why did she do it?" the one known as Steve asked. They all lived at the tower, excepting Thor and him. They had duties in Asgard. Well, Thor did.

"She wanted attention, or she thought that she had nothing else to live for." Banner said.

"How did she fall from that height and not die? On the footage, she looked like a ghost" Natasha said.

"JARVIS search the name Rose and run facial recognition." Tony said

"Rose Sverrirsdaughter, Female, 21,5'2, black hair , Parent, deceased, the other missing. One sibling, deceased, Education: High School. Has been rotated in and out of several foster homes due to severe depression and violence" The voice said, shutting down. He remembered the name Sverrir from somewhere but he couldn't quite put his finger on it. "She now lives with her roommate Airel Augustine."

Loki looked at the picture of the girl he saw earlier. She looked sad, with nothing left to live for. Her eyes were green. He thought back to the way her eyes had looked, demonic and had a blue glow about them.

"When was this picture taken?" Loki asked

"This picture was taken a few weeks before the Chitauri attack"

"Does she take any medication?" Clint asked "And where does she live?"

"Rose lives in an apartment over on the other side of town" The AI known as Jarvis responded.

"Pull up a more recent picture of her." Loki asked "Compare her eyes on the new one to the old one."

The two pictures came up side by side. There were startled gasps and glares from all sides of the room.

"Holy Mother of God" Steve whispered. "She's being controlled" They all looked to Loki. He put his hands up.

"Never seen her before" he lied. He had seen those eyes before. Staring up at him with a pleading look. He shook the memory away. "She's waging a war inside of her, See, only one of her eyes is blue. She's fighting it." He pointed to the newer picture.

"When she isn't being controlled, she could be a valuable addition to the team." Bruce said.

"Well, let's go pay her a visit." Tony said, walking to the elevators. "You guys coming?"

When they arrived at the apartment, they found the apartment a mess, all of her stuff strewn everywhere. It was a smaller apartment, two bedroom one bath. In one corner, there was an elaborate tangle of wires and computers.

"There's a note" Clint said, reaching for the scrap of paper in the middle of the room. "It's for you, Thor."

"Brother, you might want to come here." Thor said, examining the note. When he looked at the note, he paled.

"What does it say?" Natasha asked.

"Dragons. The last dragon, Rüknaar, thinks that this mortal is a Dovah." He said.

They explored the apartment, examining every corner of the apartment. They found anti depressants and sleeping pills in the medicine cabinet. They regrouped in the living room. Clint was missing.

"Hey, guys come check this out." Clint called from the bedroom. Clint was staring at the room. It had gruesome paintings all over the walls and floor. Some of them were on canvases. It showed the tip of a arrow pointed at people she obviously cared about. The people were painted with great detail, showing their pleading faces. The one that was the most gruesome was a arrow protruding out of a small boy's neck, blood seeping out of his mouth.

"Oh my god" Bruce whispered. A tinge of green spread through his furrowed brow.

Loki walked over to a pile of canvases in the corner face down. He picked one up, flipping it over. It showed a picture of a blurred doorway, a gold and green blur of a figure. There was a glowing blue light in the figures hand. He realized that this was him.

"Umm, Loki, I'm pretty sure that's you…." Tony said "You lied"

"I swear, if I did meet her I don't remember." Loki said

"WHAT ARE YOU PEOPLE DOING IN THAT ROOM" A girl walked in "Your not supposed to be in here." she stopped yelling as soon as she realized who was there

"Hey Girl, when's the last time you saw Rose?" Tony said

"Right before I left to go to the store. She was on the computer, watching you guys flip. I knew you would catch her eventually I told her to stop" she babbled her eyes wide.

"We think she's been kidnapped." Steve said, coming out of a trance.

"Why are we not supposed to be in here?" Asked Tony, blatantly ignoring Steve's

"After she painted these" She gestured to the walls. "She stopped painting all together. She wanted to burn all the canvases and cover the walls in black, but I told her to just lock the room up and never go in it again. Sometimes, when she thought I was asleep, she would sit in here and cry her eyes out."

He noticed his bow propped up in the corner. It had been his when he was younger, to protect himself from the dragons. He grabbed it, remembering she had took it. When his fingers made contact, he felt like he was falling from the Bifrost again. He sank to his knees, moaning.

"No, No, don't hurt me, I'm not a dragon. Please, I'll give you whatever you want! Please, please, please stop, make them stop!" A voice begged. He searched wildly around for the source.

"All I want is to marry you" a raspy voice said.

"Yes, YES PLEASE I'm begging you, stop, please, stop….stop hurting them" The voice faded away.

"Loki? Brother?" Thor said rushing up to him. Loki looked at Thor, his eyes wide and his lip quivering. "What is it? What happened?

"What happened to him? Why is that guy who tried to take over New York here?" The girl babbled.

"She agreed to marry him. We have to stop that ceremony. He was torturing her somehow, forcing her to say yes" He said, still scanning the room. The people's eyes stared at him, blaming him. "Lets get out of here" Loki said, eyeing the walls.

"For once, I actually agree with Reindeer Games." Tony said, walking out of the room. Everyone followed, including Loki. He was shaken, eyes looking around wildly.

* * *

Rose watched helplessly as her best friend was beaten to a pulp. Tears streamed down her face, blurring the image.

"Stop, stop please, please….don't hurt her PLEASE, PLEASE STOP STOP HURTING HER! I already told you I would marry you!" Rose screamed at him. He was holding Airel by the hair two feet off the ground. She was screaming, locks of her hair being torn out. The screams tore at Rose's ears.

"This is all your fault! If only you had embraced the dragon inside of you!" Her grandmother told her beside her.

"Gr-randma? I thought you were dead?!" She said, the tears freely falling.

"You are a Monster. You are the one that all the realms fear." Her grandma said to her. "Do you not enjoy her pain? Do you not feel power from it? Just like you did when you killed us" She said, gesturing to her family around her.

"No I- I dint kill you, I - I love you.. I would never do that….No" She protested eyes wide.

"Did you not kill your little brother and enjoy it? Well I can't really blame you, Someone was forcing you to do it, But you still enjoyed it, did you not?" She asked, strolling off, the rest of her family following.

"No, No…Don't leave, No!" She screamed.

"The ceremony has to be performed on a full moon. That is two weeks away." The raspy voice said. "Two weeks."

Rose collapsed to the floor, the chains rattling. It had taken all of her strength just to lift them. She sank, the dogs approaching her. She bared her teeth, almost growling at them. They advanced, oblivious to her efforts to ward them off. Their jaws clamped down on her legs, leaving large wounds. The pain was unbearable, and she moaned as the darkness consumed her. She would take night terrors over this any day.

The light pushed against her eyes, forcing her to wake up. Her eyes were met by yellow ones. The beast caressed her cheek with his claws, making her flinch back. He hissed through his teeth, coming closer.

"Do you miss your family?... Are they alive? Did you kill them?" He asked, yanking on the chains that held her, bringing her closer to him. She spat in his face.

"Just because I'm marrying you, doesn't mean I have to like you" She said, pulling away.

"And just because I'm marrying you, doesn't mean I have to treat you well!" He exclaimed, unlocking her chains from the wall and dragging her across the room. This went on until her arms felt like they were being pulled out of their sockets. "Bring her family in" He said.

Her family members filed in, chains rattling. Her mother was leading them in the room. Her grandmother was hunched over, the weight of the chains dragging her down.

"Why? Why did you do this to us? Why do you let us be chained up?! YOU COULD HAVE SAVED US!" Her little brother shouted at her. Tears streamed down her face. She was at a loss for words. She remembered aiming the arrow at her little brother's throat, him coughing up blood. She fell to the ground whimpering. Spots appeared in her vision and she struggled to clear them.

"The wedding is tomorrow." The raspy voice said. She had been there for two weeks, and it was the longest two weeks of her life. She had been tortured, bloodied and bruised. The man always kept the light on, forcing her to watch as he inflicted pain on her family. She never knew when it was night or day. She had no idea what time it was. It was maddening. She was fed meager scraps, and most of the time the dogs got to them first. Her clothes had been shred into tatters, barely covering her.

She heard the door open. She looked up, expecting to find the beast looking at her. Instead, she saw a red and blue blur. The blur unchained her and Rose was lifted, barely conscious. They walked through the industrial warehouse earning stares from the workers. They had no idea what had went on down in the basements. She flinched as the sun pounded at her eyes.

"You're gonna be fine, Kid." She heard someone say as she closed her eyes slowly.

* * *

**Hey, I'm really hoping for a Beta reader...So, if you want to, give me a message.**


	2. Chapter 2 CONTAINS SELF HARM!

**_-WARNING!LOOK HERE RIGHT OVER HERE!-_**

**This chapter contains self-harm. I am not intending to offend anyone in any way. **

**Ok, now that thats over, please leave a comment, even if it's just one word, I really appreciate the feedback. It only takes a second!**

* * *

When she woke up, she was disoriented. She was laying in a soft bed with pillows strewn everywhere. She slowly sat up, fearing it was some kind of trick. She reminded herself that this was her second day here, and that she was fine. She had refused to speak yesterday.

"Sleeping Beauty is finally awake!" Tony chuckled coming into her field of vision

"I, I think I need a drink….." her voice was scratchy and hoarse "No, not that kind of drink, Tony." she snapped as he held out his liquor. She grabbed the glass of water beside her bed. She didn't feel anything, almost like she was numb. "Why did you save me? I mean nothing to you."" She asked as she sipped the water that she found beside her bed.

"Were superheroes, 'earth's mightiest heroes" He said nonchalantly sipping on his drink.

"He did horrible things to me….. " She whispered "The dogs….." She rocked back and forth with wide eyes looking around frantically. She could feel the eyes of the beasts on her, waiting for her to collapse.

Flashbacks of the attacks fluttered through her head. Rose started to panic and she flailed around like a fish out of water. "They're here!"

"Calm down Rose, you're safe now everything's going to be alright," Steve said in a soothing voice. It didn't work, she was still panicking.

"That's it, Sunshine you leave me no choice!" Tony said while inching towards Rose. He hand had made a fist.

"Back off!" Steve commanded. "She was imprisoned for three weeks, give her a chance to get it out of her system."

" Loki, do us all a favor and try to calm her down." Tony said after an hour of screaming and sobbing. He was outside the room, itching to knock her out

"You idiotic mortal, you can't tell me what to do, I'm a god and I do what I want!" Loki shot a glare at stark.

"Do it brother, this will be a good chance for you to prove yourself worthy," Thor spoke in a firm voice. "Just be warned, if you betray me, I wont hesitate to kill you."

She heard the exchange faintly, but her mind didn't comprehend it. Her voice was hoarse after screaming for so long. Curling up in the fetal position, she sobbed. The tears never came though. She was in that room again, staring at the beast.

"DON'T CRY!" he screamed at her. He put his fingers to his lips and whistled. The dogs came running but he stopped them before they could get to her.

"Every tear that falls, the dogs will bite, so I suggest you not cry"

She felt cool hands on her cheeks. This reminded her of all the slaps and caresses she had gotten from Rüknaar. She let out another scream, seeing the beast's face in front of her. She felt the darkness approaching her. Gladly accepting its embrace, she sank into it.

She wandered in the darkness, searching for something.

"What is your name?" she asked it

"I am Völum" he responded. The voice was hard to describe, it was rough and smooth at the same time, It was perfect. The silver dragon beside her hissed.

"Hush, now" She told the dragon beside her, reaching out and stroking the scales of Völum . A dam broke inside of her and she let the tears stream down her face like a waterfall. Sobbing, she collapsed into the dragons neck. He looked taken aback for a moment, then curled his neck around her. She lay curled up under the dragon's wing for what felt like hours. The dragon slowly nudged her awake.

When she opened her eyes, she was met with the bland roof. No one hovering over her this time. She cleaned herself up, dressing in her usual black hoodie and dark jeans. She wasn't emo, she just didn't like any other color. All she had to do was get through this day, then she would be fine. She knew it was a lie, but she believed it. She trudged out into the hallway, heading towards the dining room. All of the avengers were spread throughout the room.

"Why the long face?" Clint asked her.

"I'm just tired" She told herself more than him.

"You want some eggs? They're over on the counter." He gestured to a buffet table.

"No, im fine." She said. She had no appetite. She turned to walk away but Clint grabbed her wrists. Her hoodie sleeve had crawled up, exposing her wrists.

"How did you get these scars? Do you cut yourself?" worry rushed off him in waves. Her eyes widened and she yanked her hand back.

"No, My cat scratched me." She snapped. "Jarvis? Do you know if Tony has any Paroxetine?" She asked entering the stairwell. She used the official name, fearing they would hear her. She could feel the depressing thoughts creep into her mind.

"Why would you need anti-depressant? Nevermind, He has some on the first level, in the pharmaceutical section." Jarvis said.

She felt nothing. It was almost like she was numb. She fought the feelings as she headed towards the pharmacy. Grabbing the medication, she took the recommended dose. She decided to take the elevator up. It wasn't that small, was it? She tried to make herself as small as possible as the steel death trap slowly crawled upwards.

* * *

Loki watched as the Midgard girl burst out of the elevator, glaring at it as if it had hurt her. She no longer had a confident gait as she had when he first met her. He was lounging out on a leather sofa, eyeing the Midgardian warily. She had dark circles under her eyes.

"Oh, stop it, I'm not going to hurt you" She said eyeing him.

"I'm not worried that you will hurt me, Merely wondering why you are trying to kill that Midgard contraption with your eyes" He put on a smug façade. She just glared at him, walking over to the bar. She reached for a drink, but then stopped. She had a weird look on her face almost like she was arguing with herself. Tony walked in, talking with Bruce.

"Hey, Kid, because of your little 'problem' we're having one of the avengers stay with you at all times. Any volunteers to go first?" He called out. No one spoke up. Her eyes widened but she quickly composed herself. He watched her with fascination. She seemed to fall apart within herself.

"I don't need a guard, but of course, I'm just a burden that you want to be rid of!." she said, storming off to the hallway.

"Kid, we don't think that…." Tony called after her. "Think positive"

"Loki, you're going to watch her first" Steve said

"Of course I'm the scapegoat" he muttered, getting off the couch. He walked down the hallway, muttering to himself. He put on a face of indifference. When he got to where she was staying, he knocked lightly on the door.

"Go away" She said. "I don't want to talk" her voice cracked on the last word.

"I don't want to talk either, just let me in" He said. He tried opening the door and found it unlocked. When he walked in, he saw Rose sitting on the floor, a razor in her trembling fingers. Blood dripped from her arm, staining the hardwood floor.

"Don't ask me if I'm ok, I might do something stupid and open up to you, and I'm really tired of getting close to people and then watching them leave me like I'm nothing." She said, the razor tumbling from her grasp. It hit the floor, almost in slow motion. The shallow cuts on her upper arm spelt out 'happy'

He walked to the bathroom and grabbed some bandages. He crouched next to her, gently grabbing her arm. It was his responsibility to make sure she didn't bleed to death. He cleaned the wound and wrapped it, murmuring healing spells. He noticed several faint white scars. They were barely noticeable on her ivory skin.

"Why do you hurt yourself?" he asked her quietly.

"Why do people drink? To escape, to have a distraction. You don't care, you're just curious" she said.

"Why do you need an escape?" he asked curiously. He knew almost nothing about the mortal.

"Escape the memories." She said quietly.

"What mem-" He was cut off by a sharp "No"

"Ok, Since your my guard, I want to get to know you." she said, changing the subject.

"I'll make a deal with you, A question for a question" He bargained.

"What do you get out of this, Silver-tongue?" she asked.

"How do you know I'm not telling the truth?" he asked her.

"You're the 'god' of mischief and lies."

"Fair point, if I do gain anything from it, I wont use it against you." he said. He had no idea why he was being completely honest with her. He was the patron of mischief and lies, after all.

"Why did you try to take over New York?" she asked. He didn't really want to talk about it and it must have showed on his face. "Nevermind" she said.

"What was your mother like?" he asked.

"Despicable, evil, manipulative, Wretched, degrading" She immediately responded, rattling off insults.

"I'm almost afraid to ask why" He said. She had spat those words with so much venom, it was almost scary. He stared at her, waiting for a response.

"That's good Because I'm not going to tell you." She said, rubbing her hand along her many earrings. "This might seem weird, but did you really give birth to a snake?"

"Gods no, Jörmungandr is- was my escape plan if I was ever in trouble and couldn't get out." He said, chuckling. "Why do you have so many earrings?"

"Every time I try to kill myself I add another one." She already had four, and he wondered if she would be adding another one. "This is going to sound crazy, but can you show me your magic?" Rose asked. He held out his palm. The flames danced across his palm, illuminating her face of wonder. He committed it to memory, it looked so happy and innocent. For a moment, she wasn't the troubled girl he had seen on the floor. She reached out towards the flame. It danced off of his hand and onto hers. He opened his mouth to argue, but he thought better of it. The flame wasn't burning her.

"No matter how hard I want it to, it never burns. Never" she murmured

"Why do you want it to burn?" He asked her, withdrawing the flame.

"Because it never hurts me, I could stand in a room full of fire and I would feel at home. I would feel powerful. " she looked like she had an experience with that . " Is it possible for a mortal to have magic?"

"In most cases no" He said. "But there are some exceptions, mostly petty tricks." Rose held out her hand and closed her eyes. A small ball of light formed in her hand, growing in size.

"Am I supposed to be able to do that?" She whispered. He looked at her with curiosity written across his features. "Am I a freak?"

"Not really…..Who was your father?" he asked. He was slightly frightened at this mortals abilities.

"I never knew my father, and I will only tell you my mothers first name. Sverrir" She said, getting up off of the floor. "I'm done."

He had heard the name Sverrir before. He thought of his mother, step- mother, actually. He would have to talk to her about this. Loki watched as Rose entered the bathroom. He heard water running, the sound thinly masking the sound of sobs. He wondered why she was so reserved about her mother. He left the room, looking for Thor.

"Thor, May I have a word?" He called out seeing Thor.

"Yes?" Thor said as he walked over to Loki.

"Do you recognize the name Sverrir?" He asked, getting straight to the point. He had no patience for pleasantries.

"Yes, of course! She was Mother's attendant and friend! She went missing during the Dragon war, though." Thor boomed. "Why do you ask?" Thor called out to him as Loki walked off, a thoughtful expression on his face. He walked back to the mortal's room, still thinking. If Rose was part of the royal attendant, And the only living relative to Sverrir, that would mean she was technically part of the royal family. Loki strided over to his room, which was down the hall. When he got into his room, he looked at the unfinished sketches on the desk. Sitting down, he started a new one.

When he finished, he was taken aback at the result. He stared at the picture for a moment. It was of Rose, her amazed face as the flames danced across his palm. He crumpled it up, getting ready to burn it, but then smoothed it and put it in his desk. No sense in wasting a perfectly good sketch, he thought to himself. There was a soft knock on the door.

"Now that you've seen my room, I get to see yours." Rose's voice called from the other side of the door.

"If you insist….." Loki said. "Come in." He shook his head at himself. She opened the door, walking in. She immediately gravitated toward the sketches.

"These are wonderful…." She said shuffling through them. She stopped, looking at one of them. It was Frigga, and some of her friends talking over tea. Rose's eyes widened and she dropped the photo backing away.

"No…No….No…." She muttered sinking against the wall. He rushed over to her, shaking her.

"Rose? Rose? Are you ok?" He asked.

"Please….No, I didn't kill you…... I'm not a dragon…..I would never do that…. Of course, you stood there while she told me how worthless I am! No, please don't….Please…..no, im sorry! IM SORRY!" She yelled the last part, coming out of whatever she was in. She was trembling violently, shaking like a leaf. Loki had no idea what to do so he just awkwardly rubbed soothing circles on her back. She was digging her nails into his arms, drawing drops of blood. He gently pried her arms away.

"What the hell is going on!" Tony shouted bursting into the room. Loki just stared at him, lost for words. "What did you do to her!" He yelled.

"I-I don't know! She just started saying things after she saw one of my sketches! I swear I didn't do anything to her!" Loki exclaimed, still restraining her arms. Tony walked over to the table, grabbing the sketch that fell.

"I'm going to have to confiscate this." He said walking out of the room.

"Aren't you forgetting something!" He called out desperately. Tony was already out of the room. "Put your head between your knees and breathe" He told her. She complied, gasping for breath.

"Thank you" She muttered her head still between her knees. "I don't know what came over me" She looked at his arms, eyes wide. "Did I do that? I'm so sorry!" His arms had drops of crimson blood scattered on them.

"It's fine, I can heal them" He said. The wounds were deeper than he expected. Her nails had gone through his dress shirt, tearing the fabric.

"No, it's not fine. I hurt someone other than myself." She said, shaking her head. "I'm so sorry…..My Zulotmonah was right, I do hurt everybody around me…"

"See? All good now." He spoke like he was talking to a child as he healed the wounds. "You said you weren't a dragon? What was that about?" He asked, helping her stand. She was still shaking as she sat down on his bed.

"My mother and grandmother were obsessed that there was such a thing as dragons, and that they were dragons. They showed me their dragon form, causing a stir where we were living at the time. I could never transform though, so I assumed that the gene skipped over me. After that when was six or seven, my mother hated me. She would get…" She said, abruptly stooping mid sentence.

"Your mother was always very nice to Thor and I" He said, vaguely remembering when she would play with the brothers.

"You knew her?" she asked as she stared at him with wide eyes.

"You are the last Royal Attendant and your mother and her mother were the last Rek-Dovah. She-Dragons." He said to her. Seeing her break down gave him a new perspective on her.

"I'm all alone? My family didn't survive?" The tears trailed down her cheeks. She had dark circles under her eyes. "I thought they survived…..My little brother…"

Loki didn't respond. The silence was enough. Her tears stopped and she hugged herself. Something in her eyes made him pity her. She looked like she had nothing left to live for. He grabbed a blank piece of paper and a pencil. He wordlessly handed the items to her, like a consolation. Clearing a space on the desk, she sat down. Her fingers flew as pencil scratched on paper. The ending result was a dragon, mid-flight over a Midgardian farm.

"That's really good. May I ask who that is?" He asked.

"That's my Grandma." She said. She was warring within herself. Her eyebrows furrowed as she took in the picture. "In her dragon form…."

"She is beautiful." he told her. She crumpled the paper up in her hand. A fire started up in her hand, burning the paper. All that remained were ashes.

"Why did you do that?" he asked her curiously. This mortal confused him. One minute she was screaming, the next she was perfectly calm.

"I-I don't know." she said, sinking back in the chair. After a couple minutes of silence, she got up and left the room. He was still on the bed, looking over his wounds. A knock brought him out of his examination.

"Nice of you to join me, but the Mortal has run off" He said snarkly.

"I recognize Rose's mother. About 21 years ago, we had a one night stand. Take what you want from that." Tony said.

"Why are you telling me this?" He asked boredly.

"She seems to really like you."

"She's only been here three days. How can you draw any information from that?" Loki replied smugly.

"She opened up to you. The first day, we all tried to get her to talk. Not a peep from her. You….You got her to talk." Tony said, wiping the smug look off Loki's face.


	3. Chapter 3

**There is a song in this chapter that I do not own. All credits for Loki the Fool go toCopyright1982 Alice Karlsdóttir. Thank you to all favorites and reviews. They are my inspiration to keep writing.**

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Rose looked at herself in the mirror. She was mainly focused on her eyes, which she examined with great detail. One of them was ice blue. She placed the contact in, hiding the almost glowing eye with a green film. Grabbing her Ipod, she left the room, uncertain of what she would find. She put her headphones in and turned the volume up. She sang the words to one of her favorite songs as she wandered.

"I walk a lonely road, the only one I have ever known don't know where it goes, but it's home to me and I walk alone." The words flowed easily from her mouth. She closed her eyes. "I walk this empty street, on the boulevard of broken dreams. Where the city sleeps, and I'm the only one and I walk alone." She walked into another room, ignoring the stares. She was vaguely aware of Loki following her.

"My shadow's the only one that walks beside me, My shallow heart's the only thing that's beating, sometimes I wish someone out there will find me, but till' then I walk along" She sang. The next song came on. It was and old song that she had recorded herself. The words tumbled out of her mouth, forgetting about the god behind her.

"Oh, the great gods of Asgard are noble and free, They are upright and forthright (as great gods should be), But there's one in their midst doesn't follow the rule - That sly mischief-monger called Loki the Fool." She sang, memories of when her mother actually loved her flashing through her mind. She vaguely remembered a picnic where her mother taught her the words.

"He lies and he pilfers, tells jokes that are crude, He's raucous, he's ribald, he's rowdy, he's rude; He tricks and he teases, though he's not really cruel - Just don't turn your back on that Loki the Fool. In grim Jotunheim, where the weather is freezing He mixed blood with Odin (and who knows the reason? They laughed and drank wine, went on gay escapades, Fought wizards and trolls-" She was cut off by a hand clamping over her mouth. The ear buds were pulled out of her ears, the music filling the empty hallway. She panicked and fought back feebly. Her back met the wall and she was pinned. His lips were pulled in a tight line.

"Where did you hear about that!" He pushed his hand against her throat. There was a slight blue tinge to his face. His hands felt like they were burning her throat.

"Jarvis!" She choked out feebly. Loki had a evil glint in his eye.

"I said WHERE DID YOU HEAR THAT! You mewling quim!" He shouted in her face. She flinched back as his palm made contact with her face. Black spots danced across her vision. She saw Thor run up to Loki, yanking his hand away from her throat. She tasted blood in her mouth and realized she had bit the inside of her cheek. She used the wall for support as she stumbled away from them. Tony rushed up to her and helped her stand.

"Did he actually do something to you this time?" He asked her. She nodded while pointing to the forming bruises on her neck. When she tried to talk, nothing came out.

"We need to get her to a doctor ASAP" Tony shouted to his assistants. They went running to find one of the doctors that littered the ground floors and below. In a few minutes, she was lay down on a metal table. She was still in shock and couldn't form words.

"Her throat may have been permanently damaged. She may never be able to talk again" The doctor said, examining her throat.

"Ok, Thanks Doc. Nick Fury wants to see your Rose." Tony said, helping her off the table. She followed silently. When they entered the living room, Fury was waiting. She was separated from Tony and handcuffs were placed on her.

"You are now in custody of S.H.I.E.L.D" He told her as she struggled away from them. Her mouth parted but she closed it. She realized that this was a fight that she couldn't win. She followed silently as she was taken to a helicopter. She sat, her cuffs digging into her wrists. She glared at the guards as the airplane took off, heading to the Helicarrier.

When they arrived, She was met by the stares of the soldiers. Another plane landed and the Avengers filed out, including Loki. Her eyes glared daggers at him. Her gaze was pulled away from him and onto Fury.

"Why have you not spoken? Usually when we get prisoners they speak." Fury said.

"Well, she was just damn near choked to death by Reindeer Games here!" Tony was over-exaggerating it. She glared at Loki, wishing that she could go over there and kill him. Fury just dragged her to the interrogation room. She stared at him bewildered. S.H.E.I.L.D only deals with potential world threats.

"Your grandmother was a Asgardian, Was she not?" Fury asked her. She wanted to punch him in the face. Instead she nodded.

"What was she like?" He asked her. She shrugged. She wasn't actually lying to him. She smiled, zipping her lips and throwing the hey away.

"Put her in a cell" Fury got up and walked up to the agent.

"But we only have one cell sir. Loki is in it. Didn't he try to choke her?" The agent protested

"I don't care, put her in with him! Just get her into a cell!" Fury pushed past him. She followed the agent as she led her to the chamber. Loki looked up at her, grinning. Glaring, the agent let her into the cell. The man gave her a look of pity before leaving. Loki looked surprised for minute but quickly recovered. She sat down in the corner. She glared at Loki, wanting to kill him. Singing was the one thing that she truly loved, and he took that away from her.

"Why do you not speak?" She stayed silent. She might be able to have fun with this. "I demand you speak!" She smirked and shook her head. She felt something probing at her mental barrier. She glared at Loki. He pushed, gaining access to her mind. She rand over and tackled him, bringing him to the floor. It stopped the connection, but not before he found out why she wasn't speaking.

"I am…I apologize. I was way out of hand and I shouldn't have attacked you like that. I was angry." She stared daggers at him. Her mind was screaming out all of the unladylike names she wanted to call him.

"You should be grateful for his apology. 'He does not throw them around' As you Midgardians say." Thor's booming voice reached her. She turned and looked at him. "I am sorry for your imprisonment. The Furious Man believes you to be a threat" He was standing at the glass.

" She is a threat. Her grandmother was Rek-Dovah" Loki said. She longed to wrap her hands around his neck and make him feel what she felt. The inability to speak was killing her.

"You look like you want to say something. Speak your mind Lady Rose" Thor said. Quickly realizing his mistake, he flushed. "I'm sorry- I didn't mean to!" He stammered. Rose glared at him, then softened. It was a simple mistake, and who can stay mad at Thor for long? She longed to tell him it was ok. This reminded her of Loki, and she refrained from choking him to death.

"Sorry Kiddo. I had no say in this." Tony walked in. She shrugged, not really caring.

"Man of Iron, will you leave me and my brother to speak?" Thor asked. Rose winced at the word speak. She was dying to talk. She sat on the bench that once occupied Loki. Her fingernails tore into the plastic. She heard the murmurs of Thor and Loki, but chose to ignore them. A fist banged on the glass and she looked up. Loki looked absolutely pissed. She shrank away from him as he walked over to her.

"Loki…" Thor warned. Loki clenched his fist and then turned on his heel. She curled up on the corner of the bench, her knees pressing into her chin. Closing her eyes, she clenched her teeth. She felt a lump in her throat. The tears threatened to fall but she held them back. The full reality of the situation hit her like a ton of bricks. She was a threat to the Earth, and she was locked up with the god of mischief.

"Lady Rose? Are you Ok?" Thor asked. She nodded, biting back tears. At least tonight if she got any sleep she wouldn't be screaming. Loki was at the other end of the circular cell, as far away from her as possible. She stuck her hands in her pockets. Her hand hit a cylindrical shape and she smiled, pulling the sharpie out. Walking over to where she knew the camera was, she uncapped the sharpie.

She looked at the finished product. It had all the names she wanted to call Fury written backwards so the cameras could see. She flipped the camera off and sat against the wall, ignoring Loki.

"Give me that!" Loki demanded. She flipped the sharpie and stuck it in her pocket. She smirked. He wouldn't get it. He lunged at her and she rolled away just in time. His head hit the glass with a satisfying clank. In her jacket pocket, she found her Ipod. She frowned. Looking through her playlist, she chose something that would annoy the heck out of him. Lady Gaga blared out of the small device.

"What is that sound!" Loki exclaimed, rubbing his head. She shrugged. She gestured to her ear, signifying that she didn't hear anything. He looked around bewildered, and then narrowed his eyes at her. "Turn it off!"

She merely shrugged at hem and put her hands in her pockets. The music stopped and she pulled out her Ipod. Flipping through the apps, she opened the hacking system. She decided to try and hack SHIELD. It wouldn't work, but she decided to try.

"What are you doing?" Loki asked her, looking over her shoulder. She set the phone down and brought her hands up, punching him in the face. He clutched his nose cursing at her. Some part of her wanted it to be broken, but the other part of her didn't. She grabbed her Ipod, ignoring his bloody nose. She sat in the corner, looking at the SHEILD files that she gained access to. She looked at the file of her. They actually had a file on her. Pictures of her grandmother in dragon form littered the screen. She sorted through them. They all contained pictures of her looking up in wonder. There were more recent pictures of her jumping off of the tower as a ghostly figure.

The Ipod was roughly grabbed from her and she looked up at Loki with a exasperated look on her face. He scrolled through the pictures examining the phone carefully. The lights shut off suddenly. Loki tucked the phone in his shirt pocket. He lay down on the bench smirking.

"Good night" He said closing his eyes. She paced the room, longing for her Ipod. It had all of her games on it. She fingered the sharpie that was in her pocket. When she was certain he was asleep, she drew a Hitler mustache on him. She sat down at the other side of the chamber, curling into a ball. She couldn't wait to see his face in the morning when he figured it out.

She woke up to screaming. After a minute, she realized that the noise was originating screaming. Her throat was on fire. All she remembered was a burning sensation crawling up her legs. She struggled to move her arms but found them restrained by cool hands.

"It's ok, It was only a nightmare" The voice whispered in her ear. She struggled against it, her screams dying in her throat. "Nothing is going to hurt you now" She remembered all that happened and broke down in silent tears. She probably just ruined her vocal cords. Looking up, She couldn't help smiling when she saw Loki's face. The mustache was still there.

"What do you find so amusing? You just had a horrible nightmare!" he questioned.

"You might want to check in the mirror, Hitler." Tony said outside of the cell, holding up a mirror. Loki took one look at it and then turned to her.

"Really!? Stupid mortal!" He shouted at her. He furiously rubbed at the marker, smearing it. He conjured up a rag and scrubbed his face. The marker finally came off but there was still little traces of it left on his skin. "You don't get this back now!" he taunted her by keeping the Ipod just out of arms reach.

"Ok, enough of that. Fury wants to see you. He's not to happy about what you did to his cell. I thought it was good though." He chuckled, winking. She glanced back at the wall before stepping out of the open door. Loki stood there watching her leave.

When she got into Fury's office she sat down. He spinned his chair to face her. He didn't exactly look happy.

"I'm more mad about you hacking into S.H.I.E.L.D than the cell." He said looking at her. "I will have to confiscate your phone." She shrugged pointing at Loki on the screen. He was playing around on it. "Very well, We will be keeping a close eye on you. A very close eye." She chuckled inwardly and covered one of her eyes with her hand. As she was escorted back to the cell, she gave Fury a dirty look.

"How was your little escapade?" Loki looked at her entering the cell. She shrugged, flipping him the bird. Not talking was frustrating. "What were you having a nightmare about?" He asked. She made the signs for hear no evil, speak no evil, see no evil and shrugged.

"What does that mean you mewling quim! And don't say you cant speak because you were screaming your head off this morning!" He exclaimed. She pointed to the bruises at her throat and then to him. And then shrugged again. This seemed to infuriate him and he stalked off to the other side of the cell. He stared at his reflection in the glass. She tapped him on the shoulder and pointed to her head. He got the message because she felt his probing. She lowered the walls to let him in. He fluttered through her mind and she somehow felt violated.

"Does this make you uncomfortable?" She heard in her mind. Her head nodded no but her mind said yes. She immediately felt the presence withdraw. She sat down on the floor near the door. A compartment opened and food was pushed through. She pushed it towards Loki. Loki gave her a weird look but accepted the food. Another tray was pushed through. She grabbed it, setting it down on her lap. Pushing the food around on the plate, she only took a couple of bites.

"Is the food not satisfying?" Loki asked her. Pointing to her stomach, she nodded no. "When is the last time you ate?" She thought for a moment, her brow furrowing. Eating wasn't on her top priorities. She hadn't eaten a full meal for three days. She held up 1 finger. It was a lie and he knew it.

"You cant lie to the God of mischief and lies." He told her. "You need to eat. People will blame me if you die." She forced a couple bites of food down. She looked at him with a 'are you happy now?' look. He nodded at her and went back to his own plate. Ignoring him, she looked at her reflection. The dark circles under her eyes gave away that she didn't get much sleep. She paced back and forth.

"Stop!" He half-shouted at her. She turned to face him. He was staring at his reflection in the glass. He looked troubled. She turned away and sat on the bench, playing with the handcuffs. Fury still had them on her. The cell reminded her of the room she was in when she was with Rüknaar. Suppressing the memories, she paced again, quieter.

"Not many people can sneak up on me, but that of course is when I don't have a lumbering beast next to me." Loki said, turning to the visitor. She ignored the visitor and stared at her hands. They were shaking. She knew who it was.

"Rose" The voice called out. She ignored it, staring at her shoes.

"Rose is unable to speak at the moment. I will respond for her." Loki said. She felt his familiar presence pushing at her mind. She lowered her mental walls, allowing him to enter.

"Do you want him here?" Loki asked her in her mind. She nodded no.

"I'm afraid Lady Rose does not want to communicate with you." Loki told the man. Loki sat next to Rose keeping the mental connection.

"Who is he?" Loki asked her mind. She brought forward memories of them kissing and laughing, and the relationship turning abusive. Not the physical abuse, but she was being taken advantage of.. He was still there, watching them through the glass. She walked up to the glass, glaring at him. He leaned in closer, expecting her to say something. She leaned closer to him and mouthed some words. Turning on his heel, he fled the room with wide eyes.

"What did you do?" He asked her as she sat on the bench again. She ran her fingers through her rat's nest of hair and sighed. She shook her head no. "Oh." It was frustrating to her that she couldn't talk.

"You are a useless human. You cant even speak." He muttered. It was true, she was useless. She longed to tell him that he was also useless.

She wanted to tell him how it felt to not be able to speak. Wondering how long it had been, she paced for what felt like the hundredth time. Rose wasn't fond of enclosed spaces or being locked up. She felt grimy. Not having a shower in a couple days does that to you.

Unlike her, Loki was perfectly dressed and not dirty at all. He was staring at the camera which was partially covered by sharpie. The cell was too small for her. Her eyes closed as she imagined a giant space. An idea popped into her head. It slowly dissolved when she realized that she would need to talk to pull it off.

A entity was trying to push at her mental barrier, and it wasn't Loki. A strangled noise came out of her throat, garnering Loki's attention. She wildly gestured to her head as she struggled to keep the entity out. Feeling Loki enter her mind, she relaxed.

Her temple bulged as her short break came to an end. She struggled to keep the thing out of her head. Loki was battling it with magic and she with force. They slowly drove the thing out of her head. She collapsed to the floor, her brain fried. Loki rushed to her side, pressing his hands to her forehead.

"No, no, no" He muttered. Her lids blinked slowly, Loki's image coming into focus. Her eyes fluttered. Heat crawled up her legs and she let out a silent scream. She felt hands probing at her neck. "Wake up, Rose….It's alright, It's gone. It's gone now." he whispered to her. Strands of his slicked back hair fell into his face.

The door opened and she was lifted into somebody's arms. Her head lolled to the side as she was carried into a sterile room.

"Her mind was attacked" Loki said trailing behind the group. She realized she was in Steve's arms. He set her down on the metal table, gently arranging her limbs.

"Doctor!" Steve shouted. He had a worried look on his face. His hands mulled over her, searching for injuries.

"She should be fine in a minute….." Loki said. Her eyes fluttered open. She looked around, confused. She opened her mouth to speak but no sound came out. She rolled over on her side, tearing at the clothes on the left side of her body. She didn't care that men were watching, she needed the clothes off. Once she managed to get her hoodie off with some help from Steve, the shirt was no problem.

When the fabric was torn from her skin, she exhaled. The left side of the body, from just below the arm, had burn scars extending below her jeans. Steve let out a small gasp when he saw them. The doctor immediately set to work examining her. Ribs were faintly visible through her skin.

"These burns were not treated correctly." The doctor told her. She nodded at him. She knew. She didn't remember how she had gotten them, only trying to treat them after they had happened.

"What happened to her?" Clint asked. He walked in first, followed by Natasha and then Stark. Thor came in last, Jane next to him.

"She was mentally attacked. By Thanos." Loki said. "Thanos must be working with Rüknaar"

"You need to sleep." The doctor told her. Her eyes widened and she shook her head. She looked to Loki for help.

"She doesn't sleep. When she does, she is plagued by night terrors." Loki said.

"How do you know so much about her?" Tony snapped.

"You locked me in a cell with her for two days. She slept for four hours. " Loki looked towards him. "She was quite annoying, even though she couldn't speak."

"And who's fault was that?" Clint eyed him

"I have already apologized for that." Loki said evenly, staring him in the eye.

Tearing her clothes off left her scars completely exposed. Thankfully, the most recent ones were healed by Loki. He stood in front of her, blocking the view. His mind probed at her mental barrier and she let him in.

"I'm going to force you to go to sleep and shut down the part of your brain that causes dreams for a short while." Loki said to her mind. She nodded and looked up at him. The darkness reached out to her, pulling her into it's cold embrace. She was in the darkness again.

"I-I can talk! I don't have to make weird hand gestures anymore!" She shouted to the empty darkness. "I can sing!" she let the words tumble out of her mouth. Laughing at the irony of the song that she was about to sing, she warmed her voice up.

"Hello darkness my old friend, I've come to talk with you again." She laughed to herself.

"You have a beautiful voice." Völum said behind her. He was sprawled out on the floor, his wings covering half his body. Remembering the silver dragon, she turned around. The dragon was standing still, glaring at Völum. She waved the silver dragon forward.

"That was before someone took my voice away." She conjured up a vision of Loki. Waving it away, she laughed how absurd this was. She was talking to a dragon! "Being able to sing was the only thing that kept me going." She felt comfortable talking to this dragon

"Are you mad at him?" The dragon asked. Rose walked over to the dragon, placing her hand on it's snout. He leaned into her touch, his head dwarfing her hand.

"A little. I just don't understand why he did it. One second he hates me and the next he pretends like he cares " Sighing, she stroked his cheek. He nudged her, gesturing for her to sit down.

"I'm going to tell you a story." The dragon said, closing his eyes. " There was a young man. A prince, a son to the king of the country. His brother would have been king. His mother was the wisest woman in the kingdom." A tear rolled down his cheek. "He learned that he wasn't what he though he was. They stole him from where his blood father left him to die. He was a bargaining chip in their game of politics. He was nothing more than another stolen relic."

"I don't get what this has to do with why Loki choked me." She said, leaning into the dragons neck. The silver dragon stood a little ways away, eyeing the green and black dragon. Völum muttered something under his breath.

"The Avengers wish you to wake. It has been longer than it feels like." He said as he faded from existence. "You hear but you don't listen."

When her eyes opened, six figures were around her. She recognized Steve and Tony. The others were foreign to her.

"Good, Sleeping Beauty is up." Tony said. Her mouth parted but she quickly closed it. "Relax, Sunshine, For once Loki actually did something nice for you."

She examined her surroundings. She was in a white room and a beeping was coming from her left. Her arms were restrained by leather straps.

"You kind of…..thrash in your sleep." Tony said, undoing the buckle. Rubbing her sore arms, she sat up.

"Why did Fury lock me in a cell with that guy for two days? He was a real jerk. He took my iPod." Undoing the ankle straps was harder than her arms. "Oh god, it feels so good to talk again. At least he's not a jerk all the time. How long did I sleep?" She talked, exercising her vocal cords.

"Oh, It's been a week." Tony said chuckling


	4. Chapter 4

Loki paced the cell. Quite frankly, he missed the mortal's company. She amused him. He fished her device out of his pocket, which contained pictures of her. Her mouth formed a smile, but her eyes were just empty. She was hanging off the arm of the blonde haired girl they had met earlier. Her raven hair fell in waves just below her waist. His examination was interrupted by the hiss of a door opening.

"Lady Rose has awoken. She wishes to express her thanks." Thor's thunderous voice boomed behind him.(pun intended) Loki had been worried about the mortal. Not many can withstand mental attacks. He nodded to Thor, relieved. The mortal was different.

"If you don't mind me asking, why do you care so much? You have never been one to apologize." Thor asked him in a softer voice.

"I do mind you asking." Loki sneered. He really didn't understand himself why he apologized. When he entered her mind he saw only a glimpse of her past, fragments of stories and songs. It reminded him of his own childhood. In the dark recesses of her mind, there was this empty void. It was filled with no emotions, no feelings. It was just there. The emptiness had grown in size during the time she had been in the cell.

"She is the last in the line of the Attendant." Loki blurted out. "She is Asgardian royalty." There was a feeling in his chest akin to pity.

"She has magic?" Thor asked, a weird look on his face. Loki nodded his head slightly. "We must tell Father." he boomed.

"Your father" Loki snarled "And if he finds out what she is, she will be executed." Loki felt for his brothers mind, probing at the mental barrier.

"She is Dovah." Loki said to his mind. Thor's eyes widened as Loki retreated. He paced outside the cell, his face contorted with emotions.

"If she is the Royal Attendant, she needs to be taught how to control her power. If she gets to emotionally unstable, her powers will be in chaos." Thor said, turning to face Loki.

"I know that, you dolt." Loki said. He groaned. He had no choice but to teach her, if not, she would harm people. Not that he cared. "Well, are you going to talk to Fury?" He snapped. "I can't teach her from inside a cell."

"Yes, yes. I will go talk to the Man of Fury." Thor said walking out. Loki resumed pacing his cell. He pulled out the Midgardian device again, looking at the picture of the mortal. She had waist length black hair and pale ivory skin. His examination was interrupted before he could get further.

"The Furious man has agreed to let you out. Only if you keep watch over Lady Rose." Thor said as Loki walked out..

"Why does everyone want me to watch her. They have a building filled with capable beings!" He muttered under his breath. As they walked down the halls, they were given suspicious glances. He walked forward, his head held high. The door opened and he felt a cool gust of wind. And a bucket of water. The avengers were biting back their laughs while him and Thor were drenched. Loki turned, seething to face the offender. Rose stood there, biting back laughter. He glared at her as he snapped, drying his clothes.

"It was fun while it lasted" She muttered, sitting down. "I actually have people to prank this year!" She said as she twirled n her chair. Loki sat down, glaring at the mortal.

"Why is he out of his cell?" Clint asked.

"Fury gave him permission to leave. Point break here told him that Loki was going to keep an eye on Sleeping Beauty." Tony said, scrolling down on his device. " and teach her how to control…..Magic? Seriously!"

"Yes, She is technically Asgardian. And part of the Royal Attendant." Thor said, spinning in his chair. "I like this seat. It moves."

"The Royal Attendant was a group of talented sorcerers and sorceresses. They protected the Queen and King and their sons from danger with their lives. The tradition died out a while ago, but the Attendants stayed by the Royal family's side, protecting them." Loki paused. "When attendant's become emotionally or mentally unstable, the dam that the power built behind breaks, and the attendant is now a berserker, harming everything in sight. She's a ticking time bomb now."

"So, now everybody's gonna be walking on eggshells around me. Great." He heard Rose mutter.

"I will teach her to control her powers and fortify that dam." Loki said.

"Loki, I think you just singlehandedly ruined the happiest day on the planet." Bruce glared at Loki.

"Why is today the happiest day on Midgard?" He asked

"Today is April fool's day! Here on earth, we have a day set aside just for pranks and tricks!" Tony chuckled "But here, pranks all month"

"I like this." Loki said, chuckling. Rose smiled sweetly at him. Ideas slowly formed in his head. This would be fun.

"Loki, I know that smile. You better not try anything." warned Thor.

"Just a bit of fun, really." Loki chuckled.

"C'mon Point Break, loosen up!" Steve said, adopting one of Tony's many nicknames for the group.

"Shall we start training?" Loki looked to Rose, beckoning her to come with him. She obliged, following him. "Where will we find a large open space…." he wondered aloud.

"Follow me" Rose said, leading him down a corridor. They stopped at a set of steel double doors. Rose pushed them open and they entered a large gymnasium.

"You know your way around." He stated.

"I did my research. Tony doesn't have the best defense systems." Winking, she turned. "Where do we start?" He didn't know exactly how to begin teaching someone magic. Learning yourself is different from being taught by someone.

"What do you already know?" he asked her. She stared at her hands.

"Umm, I know how to conjure a ball of light and a few incantations….. That was all my grandmother-" she shuddered "taught me."

"What incantations do you know?" He prodded. She took a deep breath, steadying herself. She fixed her eyes on the rubber dummy next to him.

"Krii Aus Faaz" She muttered. He was bathed in a blue light, forcing him to close his eyes. When his eyelids parted, he was met with the sight of the dummy in ashes. He looked towards Rose. She was staring at the dummy in shock

"I haven't heard that one before" The lie rolled smoothly off his tongue. "Another" Taking another deep breath she braced herself.

"Fem Zii Gron" Her form turned ghostly, a pale mist rolling off of her. She charged at him, taking a swing at him. Her fist passed through him like a ghost. The mist dissipated.

"Well, these I have never heard before." The lie felt bitter on his lips as he brushed ash from his shoulder. "Now, let's start by focusing your power."

"How do I do that?" She asked, staring at him weirdly. "Why are you not freaking out?"

"I could ask you the same." He shot back. "Use your hands. Focus. Imagine the energy coming out of your hand, forming whatever you want it to be." She looked at her hands, her brow furrowed in concentration. After a short while, a small flicker of light formed in her hand. She looked back up at him happily. Her concentration broke and the magic was lost. This was going to be a long week.

"You seem to be taking this quite well. Any normal human would have run screaming." Loki said observing her as she tried again.

"I just accept what's given to me, I don't question." She said. "You're breaking my focus." The light faded in her hand. "How is it so easy to conjure up a ball of light but not flames!" she groaned. A lock of hair not pinned back fell into her face and she comically blew it out of her eyes.

"It took me more than a hundred years to master the art of magic." He tried to make her feel better but she just groaned.

"I don't have that kind of time." She said. "Whatever keeps the Asgardians immortal, doesn't work its mojo on me. I'm a freak."

"Well, learn faster!" He snapped at her. She looked taken aback for a moment. He conjured up a book. It was the same one he had used when he was younger. She quickly flipped through it, looking up confused at him.

"Ummm, I don't know Old Norse. I recognize a few words, but I don't comprehend them." She looked at him. He snapped and the words were illuminated in gold before rewriting themselves in English.

" Now….Time to prank some people….." She lightened the mood as she walked out of the gym. He liked the way this mortal thought. He smirked to himself. _Maybe one day, she will be a __go_- He quickly erased the thought from his mind. She would be dead.

He walked out of the large room, roaming the halls. He ignored the stares of the agents, his head held high. He put on a face of indifference as he entered the meeting room. Tony was lounging in the swivel chair, his legs propped up on the table. The redhead was leaning in the corner, watching the group. Clint was next to her, shooting Loki a dirty look. Steve sat at the glass table with a rigid posture.

"Well hello, nice of you to join the party!" Tony said, obviously drunk. Loki leaned in the doorway, observing the group of people. Fury walked in, Rose in tow. He pushed her in a chair and stood in front of the group.

"I just spoke to the World Council." Fury started. "As you know, Loki has been punished for his deeds and has returned as a guest of Thor, who is also here visiting Jane Foster. They are vouched for by trusted agents. However, with no one to vouch for Rose here, or why she is here, and not to mention that a crazy psychopathic dragon is trying to kidnap her, The world council wants her dead." There were cries of outrage from every side of the room.

"When?" Rose whispered. There was a hushed silence. Everyone stopped to stare at Fury, awaiting a response.

"April 21st." he said. Rose broke down in tears. Her head fell down on the table.

"That's a horrible birthday present. 'Happy Birthday, Now DIE!'" She said in a jovial voice. It cracked at the end, a sob escaping her façade.

Seeing Rose this way made Loki's heart ache with a strange emotion. He didn't just sympathize for her. It was more than that, he knew what she was feeling. The tears streamed relentlessly down her face.

"You are to remain here until the day of the execution," Fury stated, distancing himself from the group. The Avengers crowded around her, offering condolences to her.

"Just, leave me alone! I don't need your pity!" She half shouted. She shot them a look. "Oh stop it. The only reason I'm here today is because of Airel." She snapped at them, the pitying looks replaced with stunned ones.

"You don't have a cat, do you?" Clint asked. Rose glared at Clint, who was reaching for her arm.

"Just…leave me alone. Nobody cares until they see the scars" Yanking her arm away, she stormed out of the room. The door hissed open, bringing in a gush of cool air.

"Clint, what do you mean she doesn't have a cat?" Natasha glanced at him.

"In the tower…She had cuts on her wrists. I should have known…" Clint put his head in his hands.

"Isn't there a way to postpone the day of the execution?" Steve asked his eyes filled with hope.

"No, there's no possible way," replied Fury. Seeing that an argument was about to erupt, Fury walked out the room while dirty looks were shot at him. The room fell silent. Tony was the first one to break the ice.

"Well, let's try to make her life the best possible."

"Seriously? None of you are going to even try to save her?" Natasha shook her head in disgust.

None of them wanted to face Fury's wrath. They all dispersed, searching for Rose. Thor and Loki walked together out of the room to an empty hallway.

"Do you think she should be executed?" Loki looked to Thor.

"If she is what you say she is, then it would be best for all of us." Thor said

"She is but a child! Ignorant of what she is!" Loki exclaimed.

"Did you think about the children that you killed here on Midgard! If anything, she deserves this fate more than anyone! She has as much blood on her hands as her ancestors! Did you forget about Amaris? She was killed by one of those monsters!" Thor shouted angrily at him. He hit a nerve. Loki flinched back at the mention of Amaris. Hurt was written across his features.

"What happened to everyone deserves a second chance?" Loki said, gritting his teeth.

"You were different. You have many people who care about you. Nobody really knows her. She will get what she deserves." Thor said calmly. Loki stared at Thor, his mouth slightly parted in shock. He had never seen his brother this way. They had just reached the end of the hallway.

Loud music erupted through the speakers and Rose barreled down the hallway, stopping for only a second to acknowledge the brothers

"Toodles!" She said in an enthusiastic voice. It was almost sickening.

Guards stormed the hallway, distracting both Thor and Loki. When the brothers turned their heads, Rose had already taken off down the corridor.

"I am pretty sure that thing is mentally deranged." Thor stated. Loki stayed silent as he walked away from Thor.

"Remember when I learned what I was? Would you wish the same fate upon her?" Pausing, he looked behind him.

"If it means she died, yes. I would feel no remorse." Thor replied, a hard glint in his eye. Loki walked away silently. He followed the general direction the mortal went in. He mulled over what Thor said. It affected him much more than he would like to admit.

"At first I thought your brother was nice. Then I heard what he said." A voice softly whispered behind him. Rose had her headphones in and he realized he never saw her without them.

"He is usually not like that." Loki told her.

"I'm used to it, but what did I do to piss him off?" She sighed out.

"Why do you wear those infernal things in your ear?" He asked her, ignoring her question.

"The silence scares me." She said.

"Why?" He asked her, realizing how hard it must have been not to fill the silence with words.

"Because it screams the truth." She responded, turning away from him. "I'm going to sleep." He stared at her as she walked off.

When he got back to his room, which was pretty much bare except for a nightstand and a hunter green comforter, he grabbed a book off of his shelf. It was Shakespeare, one of the scarce Midgard authors he liked. He left the door slightly open as he delved into the world of Hamlet.


	5. Chapter 5

**Guys, i am so sorry, my brother came down and we had a crapload of tests this week. Should be back to regular friday schedule soon. (I feel really horrible) Do you guys enjoy my writing? (I think it's shit) All of my friends tell me it's good but - nevermind. Enjoy!**

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Rose walked through the corridors, the voice in her ears drowning out all other noise. It was almost two in the morning, and she still hadn't went to her room. Lying came naturally to her, so it was no problem telling Loki she was going to sleep. She paused by his slightly open door, looking at his sleeping figure. A paperback rested on his chest, open to a random page. Slowly opening the door so it wouldn't creak, she entered the room. Loki looked peaceful in his sleep. She took the small pin from her hair, marking what page he was on. She pulled up the thin blanket on the edge of the bed, covering him with it.

"Stop" Loki murmured as she made to leave the room. Rose turned around, fully prepared to apologize. "Please…Stop…" Whimpers escaped his throat. She walked over to him, resting a hand on his forehead. His eyes rolled around frantically under his pale eyelids

"Shhh…. It's ok, No one is here except me…" She whispered to him, smoothing his hair. Sweat dampened his brow and his eyebrows were slightly furrowed. He looked like he was in pain. The podcast was forgotten, discarded on the nightstand next to the book. She sat down next to him gently, whispering to him. Rose knew exactly what he needed, for she had longed for the same type of comfort many nights.

"They are going to kill me….I will never see my mother again…" He mumbled almost painfully. He clutched onto her other hand, digging has nails into her.

"Your mother is fine. Your going to see her again. In time, you will go back to Asgard, and your mother will be waiting for you." She ignored the minor pain in her hand, focusing on calming Loki. Her fingers smoothed down stray locks of his hair while she whispered reassurances in his ear. Loki slowly relaxed under her touch, no longer mumbling. His grip lessened on her hand and she gently pulled away from his grasp. She grabbed her iPod, pulling the door open to leave. It let out a moan and she froze, hoping she wouldn't wake him.

Seeing that he was still asleep, she walked of the room, placing the headphones in her ears. Cecil Baldwin's voice filled her head, pushing away any other thoughts that she might have had.

"Remember, If you see anything, say nothing and drink to forget." She had lived by those words after she had turned sixteen, drinking to forget everything.

"There is Nothing under your bed. There's Nothing in your closet. Nothing waits in every darkness. Nothing is the most terrifying thing of all." The quote couldn't be more true. She loved the numbness inside of her, yet she hated it too. The nothingness suffocated her sometimes, making it hard to breath with the tears that wouldn't fall.

She walked into the large kitchens at the bottom of the ship, her reflections bouncing off of the stainless steel pans. The soft yellow glow filled the dark room as she opened the large refrigerator door. Scanning it's contents, she sighed. Nothing captured her attention.

"Hey, shouldn't you be asleep like the rest of the crew?" A figure appeared in the doorway. He was wearing a blue shirt that had a large number four on it. She turned the volume down on the podcast.

"I'm technically not crew, more like prisoner. And may I ask who you are?" Her hand flinched away when the frozen interior of the fridge brushed her palm.

"Seriously? You don't know who I am? I'm The Human Torch! Johnny Storm, all the ladies love me?" He stared at her incredulously.

"Oh, yea, you. Sorry, I really don't get out that much." She said, settling for a cold Coco-cola. A tingle traveled up her arm as she popped open the coke. She didn't care much for cold things.

"Well, that's obvious. Your face is as pale as snow." Johnny said as he grabbed a coke.

"People used to compare me to Snow White." She said. "Her face was as white as snow; her lips the color of crimson blood with waves of ebony hair" The words were bitter.

"Well, they were right, You are the fairest in all the land." He attempted to flirt with her.

"Not a chance, Johnny." Johnny stared at her almost in shock. "You only like me because you think I'm pretty. If you really knew me, you would run screaming." Her eyes had taken on a evil glint as she looked back at him. It was almost like she wasn't in control of her body. "Tell them to stay out of my way. I know their plans. I don't care if you kill my vessel, I will find another one!" He stared at her with a confused look on his face. Unintelligible whispers filled her head.

"My Queen…All hail to you…" She made out through the static noise in her head. The voices intensified, almost becoming a shout. As suddenly as they appeared, they left.

"Are you ok?" Johnny asked her cautiously. He slowly approached her, looking at her as if she were a wounded animal. The coke dropped onto the tile, gushing out like blood. She stared at it for a moment before running. Her legs pumped with newfound energy as she ran to her room. Closing the door, she sank down against it, as if it could hold back the demons inside. Her iPhone's volume was on full blast, the voice of Cecil chasing away all other thoughts except for the strange town of Night Vale.

She stayed there, back against the door until the rays of dawn peeked through her window, illuminating her face. She was tired, but it was impossible to fall asleep. The screams that tore out of her throat every time she slept scared even her. A banging at the door brought her out of her music-induced trance. She stared idly at the door, wondering when it would stop. The beep of the door unlocking caused her to scramble away from the metal door.

She looked like a mess, her hair ruffled and dark circles under her eyes. The clothes she wore were wrinkled and creased. She looked at the boots of the figure at the door. They were black, and as her gaze traveled upward, she found that they stopped just under his knee, protecting his shins.

"You look absolutely horrible, darling." Loki said, taking in her disheveled appearance.

"Since when am I darling?" She asked, dazedly getting up. "Why are you here, I don't need training because I'm going to die anyway." She put it out there, like it was part of everyday life.

"Well, I call all women darling, and I'm not here to take you to training. I'm here to bring you to breakfast!" He exclaimed, almost dragging her out the door.

"Wait, wait, let me get ready!" She half-shouted, pulling away from his grasp. She rushed to the bathroom, noises emanating from the closed door. Loki patiently waited for her, tapping his foot. A short while later, she emerged, all traces of dishevelment gone. She was wearing a dark grey long-sleeve shirt and black jeans. Her hair was in loose waves, extending below her waist.

"Ready?" He asked her, holding the door open. He looked extremely cheerful. A rare smile graced his face as he escorted her to the cafeteria. The agents turned to stare at them, but quickly averted their gaze from Loki. She rushed through the line, only picking up a apple. Loki frowned at her but said nothing. He himself piled his plate high with eggs, bacon and pancakes. She turned to the breakfast crown and froze.

"High school all over again." she muttered under her breath as she made her way to where the Avengers were sitting. Two chairs were empty, supposedly for her and Loki. They took their seats while Bruce and Tony continued their conversation on pollution levels. Thor was stuffing his face with pancakes and bacon while Natasha and Clint were taking up half of each other's chairs. Steve was just chewing on his food observing the group.

"Loki, you seem exceptionally happy today! What is it that has you in such a jubilant mood?" Thor asked in between mouthfuls of food. He openly glared at Rose.

"Oh, nothing Thor, just had a good night's sleep." Loki responded as he dug into his food. She nibbled on her apple and listened in on various conversations around the room. Johnny strode in with two female agents clinging to his arm. She ignored him, not entirely sure what happened last night. He dismissed the ladies and walked over to their table.

"Remember what happened last night?" He said loudly. She flushed, memories of high school flashing through her head. All the tables around them turned to stare at her. No longer hungry, she set down her apple. She knew Johnny didn't want to face up to the fact that he got rejected, but still, he could have just not said anything. He wanted people to know that they hooked up. "C'mon, say something!" It was déjà vu. Brian had said the same exact thing to her that day.

"Nope." She stated, getting up. Now everyone was staring at her, including the Avengers. She left the cafeteria, tossing the tray out. Her feet took her towards the Library. Quickly scanning the books, she randomly grabbed one and curled up in a darker corner.

"Rose? Are you in here?" She heard Tony call out. Shrinking back in the shadows, she wanted to be invisible. Tony's gaze traveled across the room, passing her. "She's not here, Let's go try somewhere else." Tony called to the people around him. They shuffled out of the room, one after another. She sighed and went back to her book.

A few hours later, Loki walked in and walked in a slow circle around the room. "Rose? I Know you're here. I can sense your magic." He called out. As far as she knew, she hadn't used magic. Loki made concentric circles around the room, getting closer to her with every revolution. He stopped in her corner of the room, behind the tall bookshelves. He stared at the place she would be, not really staring at her. Waving his hand over the corner, she felt a tingling sensation.

"There you are! You stayed hidden for awhile." He said, siting down next to her. "What happened between you and Number 4?" he asked, making her chuckle.

"Nothing happened. He wanted to make a big spectacle of him not being rejected when really he was. He tried to flirt with me and I shot him down." She said, not tearing her eyes from the book. "Why are you so happy? Usually when I see you, you're brooding and stand-offish"

"I had a very pleasant dream." She gave him a weird look before returning to her book. Brushing hair out of her face, she turned the page. She usually wore a small pin to keep it out of her face but she had used it for Loki's bookmarker. Her eyes drooped slightly but she forced them open.

Loki hummed a familiar tune and she started singing along to his humming. The song was about the Three Norns who chose the fate of gods and men.

"What shall I spin, sisters, what shall I spin?

A tale full of wonder, both happy and grim.

Nimble young fingers are turning the spindle,

twisting the skein of the dawn of mankind.

Stardust as wool swirls on the spool,

binding and winding the wyrd of a world."

She didn't remember the rest of the words, so she stopped. Loki continued humming, his voice lulling her to sleep. Her head fell on his shoulder, the book forgotten in her lap. As she closed her eyes, she felt herself being lifted up into strong arms. Her head was cradled against his chest. Loki smelled like old books and honey.

"You smell good." She mumbled to him. His chest moved a little, indicating that he chuckled. Her eyes opened a crack to look at Loki's face. He was looking forward, watching the path. The click of a door announced that they were in the room. She closed her eyes as they entered the bright room, drifting off as soon as her head hit the pillow.

She woke in utter terror, writhing in someone's grasp. Disoriented, she looked around wildly. Three women were standing in the corner, holding a tapestry. One of them held scissors and she was inching them toward the thread. Snip. Snip. Snip. It evoked a terror she had never felt before within her. They stared at her with vacant, unseeing eyes. The arms had her imprisoned, unable to escape their unwavering looks. "Snip, Snip!" One of them called out. A well sat between the three, and one kept sneaking glances down into it. A large sword was beside the well, resting on the wooden beam.

"Shhh, Shush. You're fine, nothing is going to hurt you. You're ok." a voice whispered in her ear. One by one the people faded out until it was just empty space. She looked around the room, which she didn't recognize at first. She was in Loki's room on his bed. He was holding her in a tight embrace, rubbing soothing circles on her arm. The snipping of the scissors echoed through her head.

"Snip, snip. Snip, snip. Snip, snip. Snip, snip. Snip, snip. Snip, snip. Snip, snip. Snip, snip." She chanted repeatedly, rocking back and forth.

"It's ok. They're gone. They aren't here anymore." He whispered to her, trying to calm her. "They aren't going to hurt you." She buried her head in his chest, tears streaming down her face.

"Snip, snip. Snip, snip. They've come to take my life!" She whispered into his armor.

"Who has come to take your life?" Loki asked her, his slender fingers tracing patters on her back.

"The Norns, of course!" She said, clutching Loki.

"Tell me exactly what you saw." Loki commanded, pulling away from the embrace.

"They sat around a well. The had a unfinished tapestry with a long thread hanging down into the well. There eyes just stared at me, unblinking. The one on the right told me "Snip, snip" and was about to cut the thread." She mumbled in between sobs. "This is why I don't sleep. Crazy things happen."

"C'mon, you need to see a doctor. You were hallucinating. The Norns would never do that" He reassured her, helping her get up. She stumbled down the hall, Loki catching her every time she was about to fall. They made their way to the medical department.

"She needs a doctor. No, she's not hurt, she needs a psychiatrist." Loki told the medic at the hospital wing.

"Right this way, sir." The nurse said, ushering them towards a small room. A older doctor was seated, looking over papers in his hand. He looked up and scowled when he saw Loki.

"Just stop it. She needs you." Loki said, seating her down in the chair. He left the room, shutting the door behind him.

"He cares about you. Never seen that look on his face before. By the way, I'm Erik Selvig." He said, not once glancing up from his papers.

"He did what any normal person would do. Take the crazy girl to the doctor." She said, slightly rocking back and forth.

"Ok, diagnosis. Are you feeling down?"

"Yes. It is a side effect of dying."

"Loss of pleasure in daily activities?"

"Long time ago. Seriously, don't waste your time on me."

"Loss of appetite?"

"Only eat when necessary."

"How much weight have you lost in the last month?"

"Not much."

"Do you feel like a bad person?"

"Yes." The questioning took her mind off of her visitors that morning.

"Tell me about it."

"Nothing to tell. I'm a monster, a freak and a piece of worthless shit."

"Do you think about killing yourself?"

"Maybe." She said, not really wanting to answer.

"There is nothing wrong with you that hasn't already been diagnosed." He handed her a pill. "Take this and you should feel better."

"I'm going to change that. In a good way." She said as she exited the small room. Clint was seated outside, waiting for her. He looked up when the door clicked. "Seriously? I cant go anywhere without you guys following me! Loki even woke me up this morning!" The small tablet was tucked in her pocket, safe from view.

"Loki woke you up this morning? We've been looking for you since yesterday! We checked your room but you weren't there." Clint said, eyeing her suspiciously.

"That is because she was in my room, resting." Loki said, causing Clint to turn around. Clint's stance was tense and he was eyeing Loki warily.

"And why was she doing that?" Clint looked back at her briefly.

"Umm, guys? I'm right here. And, like, seriously? It doesn't matter who I sleep with! I'm going to die anyway." She said, pushing past them. "And no, Clint. Sleeping was all I did." She said to Clint's shocked face. Her fingers unknotted clumps of her tangled hair. The strands pulled at her scalp, making her wince. Spying Natasha, she walked over to her.

"Hey Natasha."

"Hey Rose." She responded, watching Clint as he entered the room.

"Are you guys a thing?" She asked. They certainly acted like it.

"No" Natasha quickly defended, giving her a weird look.

"Hey Clint, Natasha has something to tell you!" She called out. Clint made his way up to the girls, not wasting any time. Rose smirked and jogged off right as Clint walked up. Natasha glared at her, flushing before she turned to Clint. She watched them talk for a while before Clint's face broke out in large smile. Rose's face spread into one of her rare grins.

"We have been trying for years to get them together and you come in here and do it in a few minutes!" Pepper came up beside her.

"No one ever tried the middle school way? Just get them to talk to each other?" She looked at Pepper's confused look.

"No, Though I'm surprised Tony didn't think of that." Rose shot a glance at Tony, who was fiddling with his suit. "Then again, all he does now is build suits."

"What was it like? To be in New York, I mean." Her memories were just flashes of images. Her fingers immediately reached for the glass arrowhead in her pocket.

"It was terrifying. The alien things, they kept coming out of the portal. It felt like it would never end, there were dead bodies everywhere." Pepper continued but Rose's focus was elsewhere.

"Her eyes glowed, like legit glowed. They looked like cat eyes in the dark. It was freaky, because she talked with this really rough voice. I'll never forget her face. It was contorted in almost agony with a little bit of anger." Johnny was telling Bruce. A snap brought her attention back to Pepper.

"Sorry, I was just imagining what it was like." The lie rolled off her tongue smoothly.

"Are you alright? I know you went to Erik, but nobody would tell me why." Pepper looked at her caringly.

"Depression is a side effect of dying." She snapped, fed up with people asking if she was alright. Once people knew what she was diagnosed with, they tended to stay away from her. Truthfully, she didn't want to get close to anyone.

"We care about you, Rose, we really do." Pepper said sadly.

"Well, you need to stop. I'm a grenade, Pepper. I'm a grenade, and on the 21st I'm going to blow up and I would like to minimize the casualties, Okay?" Her voice escalated into a shout. The whole room turned to stare at her. They averted their gaze when she glared at them.

"You get to chose who hurts you in this world." Pepper told her. "And we have chosen to have you be a part of our lives, however short that part may be." Pepper pulled Rose into a hug. Her muscles stiffened, unused to the physical contact. Pepper pulled out of the hug, placing a light kiss on her forehead.

"Thank you. Now, do you know how to play poker?" Rose asked.

"Of course! I live with Tony Stark!" Pepper rolled her eyes, walking over to a table. "Tony! Time to play Poker!" Tony immediately stopped his conversation and turned to look at them.

"Anyone else want to join the rookies in a game of poker?" Tony called out to the room. A couple of agents made their way over to the table, and eventually they had to pull over another table. The game started and Rose had a good hand, a rare royal flush.

"I would like to play" A familiar voice called from the doorway.

"PHIL!?" Rose sputtered. Her mailman was here.

"Close your mouth Rose, it is very unattractive on you." He calmly said. "The mailman act was only so I could keep an eye on you."

"Umm, his name is Agent! Why does no one else know this!" Tony indignantly called out.

"I have been living a lie." She declared, placing her cards face down on the table.

"Is that a forfeit Rookie?" Tony asked.

"Never, Stark. I raise." They were playing with chocolate coins, so she put half of them in the pot. As they went around the table, the agents folded until it was just the Avengers, except Thor.

"I fold." Steve placed his hand on the table.

"I call." Natasha put her chips in the pot. She was the last in the group, so they all placed their cards down. Her hand was highest, a Royal Flush.

"What, how did you think I got all of my equipment?" The hand was really just luck, although she did earn the money for her computers through gambling. Unwrapping the gold foil on another token, she popped the chocolate in her mouth. "Now, Phil, why did you pretend to be my mailman?"

"Fury wanted to keep an eye on you." Coulson responded, stealing one of the tokens. She let out a huff of indignation, chewing on her own piece of chocolate. "We knew that your family was different, so we kept tabs on you. Your mother was to be contacted about the Avengers initiative, but that kind of backfired."

"You wouldn't want my mother." The words came out bitterly.

"Why?" Tony asked.

"Steve? Do you remember those scars on my back? Not the burn scars, the horizontal ones?" Steve nodded to her. She closed her eyes, unwilling to relive the memory. It came back to her, regardless. She could almost feel the knife pulling at her ivory skin. "My mother. You guys are looking at me like I'm crazy."

"Why didn't you call authorities?" Natasha asked.

"Who are they going to believe? the little accident prone 10 year old versus the very nice lady who has a way with words?" The memories came rushing back to her. "I did go once. I just ended up with more scars. I don't want to talk about it anymore." She had distanced herself from the memories, reliving them in third person.

"You were ten?" She mutely nodded in the general direction of Clint.

"What about your little brother?" Thor asked.

"My little brother was the golden child, better at everything. Or so my mother thought. He was actually a dragon, and when he was five he had his first transformation. It was always Daniel who got the exceptions, it was always Daniel who was allowed to have sleepovers and have a social life. Don't get me wrong, I loved that little boy to death. He was the one who gave me the iPod. He could have kept it for himself, but he gave it to me." The happy memories of Daniel came rushing back to her. The moment when he handed her the iPod was one of the best memories she had ever had. "See, Thor, I've already got what I deserved." A lone tear escaped from the corner of her eye.

"If Loki is the one who killed your family, then why are you so comfortable around him?" Steve asked curiously.

"Because I don't truly believe that he did those things on his own free will. From what I've known about Loki, he is a pretty good guy. Yes, I know he choked me, but he apologized, and I can completely understand why he did it. People make mistakes" Her gaze travelled across the group.

"Why did he do it?" Thor questioned. "He never told me."

"I was singing a particular song that he didn't enjoy…. And it was kind of payback" She trailed off.

"O.K… I'm not even going to ask what that song is because I probably don't want to know." Tony said, putting the glass of liquor to his lips.

"Plus, Loki genuinely seems like a nice guy, once you get to know him a little bit." Rose shrugged his comment off.

"He killed over thousands of people, Rose." Natasha looked at her seriously.

"Did he ever engage citizens in hand to hand combat? No, I don't think so. I think he was just carrying out orders." She said defiantly, going out on a limb. "Listen, I've done some research. Thor told Shield that Loki fell off of the Bifrost, Right?"

"He let go" Thor interjected.

"So, where did he go for a year? We know he wasn't on earth because he came in through the portal. Anything could have happened to him during that year."

"It doesn't mean that he didn't do those things on his own." Natasha said. Clint was next to her, toying with her heirloom, the bow made of ivory.

"It doesn't matter. What he did was, I'm about to be 22," She ticked off on her fingers. "That was 7 years ago. He has paid for his crimes in Asgard, which, by the way, they used to use sensory deprivation and drowning among other things, which is way worse than anything people on earth could ever do." It was 6 against 1, they all disliked Loki.

"How did you know what forms of punishment Asgardian prisoners receive?" Jane asked, leaning into Thor.

"Old Norse legends." She said nonchalantly. "And some of my own previous knowledge."

"And how would you happen to have that prior knowledge?" Coulson asked

"My mother" the word tasted bitter in her mouth. "was Asgardian, and had the Dragon gene."

"Eye of Hawk, I would suggest you stop playing with my brother's bow." Thor said and she looked at him incredulously. The bow was hers, she had taught Daniel how to shoot with it. The fond memories rushed through her head, filing her with a warm feeling. It had been in her family for as long as she could remember.

Loki announced his arrival by lightly knocking on the wall. His knock snapped her out of her mental reprieve. "I bestow Vökunsos as a gift to her." That left the room speechless. Loki giving away something was never good.

"What do you get out of giving me that bow?" She gave him a hard stare. He looked taken aback for a moment before chuckling.

"Rose, Darling, can I not give someone a gift from the goodness in my heart?" Loki said, giving her a innocent look. Tony did a double take while the avengers just stared at him in shock. Loki never called anyone darling.

"Well, God of Mischief and lies, I don't believe you can. You have a reputation for playing tricks on people." A small smile danced on her lips. The avengers watched the exchange with a aura of curiosity. During her short stay, Loki had changed dramatically. Whenever she walked into a room, he immediately perked up. He was happier when she was around.

"Well, Miss Neikvaoni*, I'm not always like that" Loki said, moving closer to her. They were about a foot apart now, and she was glaring at him.

"I'm not negative, Reindeer Games, I'm stating the truth. I don't hold you in high regards. If I take it, you will want something from me." She took a defiant step towards him. He was almost a foot taller than her but she looked up at him with a glare etched onto her features, There was a loud cough, drawing them out of their staring contest.

"Umm, while you guys oogle each other, We have plans to discuss, so if you would kindly leave…." Clint said, looking confused at her sudden mood change. She huffed then stomped off past Loki. She loved the bow, but she wouldn't owe Loki anything.

*Neikvaoni=Negativity.


	6. Chapter 6 trigger warning,

**Oh god, I am so sorry. I feel terrible, i really do. Please forgive me!? Better late then never? Anyway, reviews keep me motivated. (Sometimes friends aren't enough) so please do, it only takes a second. Enjoy! This is probably all over the place and i am so sorry.**

**TRIGGER WARNING! SELF HARM! **

* * *

Rose headed to the library, which was quickly becoming her favorite place on the Helicarrier. Her fingers ran lightly along the spines as she made her way through the shelves. She reached in her pocket for her iPod, but found it missing. Her other pocket was empty too. Disregarding the books, she headed back to her bare room. Her iPod wasn't in there either. She was becoming panicked. The iPod was the only possession that she had that she really cared about. Sure, she loved the bow, but her iPod helped her through the tough times. It was given to her by her little brother. She shrugged it off, she probably left it in the main room. She left the room, heading back to the library.

When she got there, she grabbed the book that Loki gave her. The gold lettering captivated her. Opening it, she settled down in the plush chair in the corner of the room. As she read through it, she found that Loki had forgotten to mention the words that went along with the spells. Surprisingly, the words were in Latin for her.

Quickly flipping through the spells, she chose a teleportation spell. "Ibi in materia, ego animus." She blinked rapidly. She was in the cafeteria, the book still in her hands. Some of the staff were giving her weird looks. She repeated the phrase, materializing back in the library. She closed her eyes and turned. Pinching herself, she snapped her eyes open. Her mismatched eyes met with piercing sea-foam green ones. He smiled impishly.

"I see you have learned to teleport. Very good." He said, sitting down in the unoccupied chair. His face was slightly flushed,

She pulled her hair back into a high ponytail, something she rarely ever did. Grabbing her book, she pulled up a chair to the desk. Her head was bowed over the book. "I didn't exactly have a great teacher. I mean, you didn't even tell me you need to speak Latin to do the spells." Cool fingers brushed away the hair at the nape of her neck. She stiffened under his touch. In her thoughts, she had forgotten about her tattoo.

"Blood of the covenant is thicker than water of the womb." He said, reading the tattoo she had gotten on her eighteenth birthday. "I thought the saying was blood is thicker than water.."

"Some think it is, but I like this meaning better. It means that agreements and promises that bond people together are stronger than family ties." She explained as Loki traced the words with his fingers. It was strangely relaxing after a while. "Why do you care? I mean, all the others kind of shrug me off.. You didn't though. You comforted me… and I want to know why. No one bothers with me unless they get something from it. So what is your reason?" She asked, pulling away from his touch.

"You didn't see me as a monster immediately. I was a fool back then. I can see how Thor fell in love with this place. It is truly amazing." Loki admitted, coming closer to her.

"Who said I think you a monster now?" He was turned away from her now, facing the bookshelf. "You are not a monster, Loki. And I don't think you ever will be. It still doesn't explain why you even care about me." Undoing her hair, she returned the scrunchie to her wrist.

"I don't care about you. Is that what you want me to say?" He snapped as he clenched his fists.

"Yes. Before, I would love someone to care about me. But now, I'm going to die." She responded. Tears smarted in her eyes. "I was just beginning to want to be alive." Her fingernails dug into her forearm. Rushing out of the room she wiped the tears from her eyes.

When she got to her room she immediately turned the shower on full blast. Undressing, she ran her fingers over the scars on her back. She couldn't see them, but she could feel the rough, raised flesh. They spanned the entirety of her back, pretty much the same length. Her burn scars ended at her thigh, covering most of her left side. In some places the flesh was rough, in others, smooth. Stepping into the shower, she looked at her forearms. Her wrists had thick scars where she had tugged at the rope binding them, rubbing them raw and bleeding. Her ankles bore the same scars. Her mother would tie her hands together so she couldn't fight back. After the beatings, she would force her to clean up her own blood and any other mess in the house.

Not realizing what she was doing, she felt the razor tug at her ivory skin. Without a second thought, she let the pain consume her. It was better than feeling other emotions. Every time she cut, it was always for a different reason. The pain was addicting, for a moment, nothing else mattered except the pain. She didn't have the whispers of her own mind, nor the memories. The blood welled up on her skin, bleeding into the droplets of water on her skin. She had always been fascinated with blood. It pulsed just below the surface of her skin, begging to be released. Again the razor glided across her skin. It was addicting. One cut after another. The blood was slowly dripping down her arm. They were shallow, not deep enough to deal any real damage. On one of them, her hand had slipped and the cut went a little deeper than planned.

She wondered if she just pressed a little harder and dragged the razor upwards instead of horizontally. A knock brought her out of her thoughts. She dropped the razor, cleaning her arm off. "Just a minute!" She called out as she got dressed. She put band aids on the shallow cuts, which had already stopped bleeding. She pulled on her sweatshirt and opened the door.

"Hey, Rookie, your needed in the meeting room." Tony said with a large smile on his face. She followed him with a confused look. He seemed almost too happy. "Nice sweatshirt, by the way." He added as they entered the room. It was a Black Sabbath sweatshirt, one of her favorite bands.

"I have come to a decision. Another option is that we place Rose under the conditions Steve Rogers was placed under, thereby freezing her." Fury said, clasping his hands behind his back.

She stared at him in shock. "Director, I can't be frozen." Frozen things had the opposite effect on her and she suddenly realized where she got the scars.

"Why not?" Tony asked, shooting her a look.

"I'm part dragon, remember?" She said looking at them incredulously. They frowned, not understanding.

"What she means is freezing her will condemn her to death. She is a fire dragon, and Ice kills fire." Loki said, walking into the room. Fire and ice. The words rang a bell. "Pure agony; Imagine being burned alive."

"So be it." Thor stated, leaning back in the chair. Not many pranks had been pulled, much to her surprise.

"Fury, May I have a word?" Tony said. She watched them argue for a minute but couldn't make out what they were saying. Glancing back at her, they headed into an adjoining glass room.

"Loki, since when do you care for monsters?" Thor demanded.

"Since that 'monster' is a queen." Loki responded. "Rose here is the last in the bloodline of dragons, even though she is not an actual dragon, her mother was, so she is the Jud do Yol."

"Queen of Fire." Rose immediately said. "I used to read stories to Daniel about her. The wise warrior who knew all types of magic."

"Correct. You are her." Loki said. Thor looked between them curiously. "What's with the look?" Loki snapped at Thor.

"Can I speak with you, brother?" Thor asked, motioning Loki over. They stood in the corner, speaking in hushed tones. Rose's fingers tapped an erratic beat on the table, vaguely resembling a heavy metal song.

"Rose is my daughter" She heard Tony say. "I ran a blood test." He was in another room, talking with Fury. There was no way she could have heard that. Her fingers froze mid-tap.

"I don't care, Stark. She has to be executed, and frankly, I would send her to Asgard but Thor has already spoken to me about that." Fury said. Her mouth dropped in shock.

"Director, I can hear you!" She shouted at the glass. "I heard you too, 'DAD'" She yelled bitterly. Tony stark was her father. "Thanks for vouching for me, Thor." Sarcasm dripped from every word. The glass table shattered under her fingers. The shards hung suspended in mid-air. "Why do you not like me? I've done nothing to you!" She angrily screamed at him. Thor looked at her, confused.

"What is it?" Thor asked. Loki had an understanding look on his face.

"Rose, Calm down." Loki said, approaching her.

"Thor, Answer me! What did I ever do to you?" Her lip quivered

"Your grandmother killed my little sister. And you know what's worse? You look like her." Thor said. "The only reason I have not struck you down where you stand is because Loki asked me not to."

"I deserve it Thor." She said simply as she walked out the room, the shards tinkling on the floor. As soon as the door shut, the tears streamed down her face. The nightmares that she had, not only of her family, but of murdering hundreds of people were all true. As she entered the elevator, she pressed the button for the rooms. A hand shot out, stopping the elevator doors from closing. Steve entered the elevator.

"Are you ok?" He asked, standing next to her.

"I'm fine." The lie slipped between her teeth.

"Ok." He stepped of the elevator. It was almost like he couldn't see her tears. The elevator opened again and Brian entered the elevator. She shrank away from him, making herself as small as possible. Elevators weren't really her thing. They had still not left that floor and she was dying to be let off.

"Hello Rose." Brian said.

"Brian." She nodded.

"So, you and the psychopath good friends?" He asked.

"What do you want, Brian?" She asked, exasperated.

"I want you back. I want you to love me again. You owe me. I got you into Stark Tower." He said, coming closer to her. She smelled something she could only describe as salt and musk.

"Wha-at? What are you doing?" Brian had pinned her against the elevator wall. The stench grew.

"Why don't you love me?" He asked, forcing his lips on hers. She stood there, not fighting back. She was done. The elevator door opened and Brian quickly arranged himself so it looked like she was kissing him back. Pulling away from the kiss, Brian smirked.

"Cya later, babe." He called back. Her knees gave out and she sank to the floor.

"To extreme of a make out session, darling?" Loki asked. Glaring at him, she wrinkled her nose. There was a disgusting smell, almost like moldy food. It smelled faintly of sulfur. Not old books and honey. She was in too much shock to respond. As soon as the elevator dinged for her floor, she shot out of the small death trap and headed towards her room. When she got there, she sank down on the bed. She took a gulp of water before gagging herself with a rag. It kept the screams at bay.

Burned and mutilated bodies littered the ground. Some of the bodies were piled up in small mountains. Each pile had one throne on top of it, but they were empty. She had read stories about this place, the place where all the people you kill go. Looking down, she realized she was sitting on a pile of bodies. Daniel lay next to her, a glass arrow protruding from his neck.

"You killed us, now you pay the price." Her family said in unison. One by one the corpses reanimated and threw themselves at her. They clawed at her skin, leaving her body covered in runes. Rüknaar stood over her with a piece of ice. He lowered the sharpened ice to her skin and she let out a bloodcurdling scream. The ice blade dragged across the skin on her back leaving burns in its place.

"Please, make it end! PLEASE!" She screamed out, sobbing. Her dead family shouted encouragements to Rüknaar.

"Oh, it will never end." He responded, lifting the blade away. "Unahzaal Aus"

Waking up, she removed the rag. Her arm was covered in runes that were already fading. Sitting up, she felt pain in her stomach. As she lifted up her shirt, she sighed. Dovahzul symbols reached down her side. The symbols were red and puffy, throbbing along with her heartbeat. She lowered her shirt. They usually faded within an hour.

Dragging herself out of bed, she headed to the bathroom. As she slipped her clothes off, she paused. Bruises were scattered along her back and lower thighs. Her nightmares never left bruises, only faint burning sensations. She stepped into the shower, turning it on high. The water weighed down her hair as she combed through it. She exited the shower, drying her hair.

A knock sounded on the door. Ignoring it, she grabbed a book. She still hadn't found her iPod, and she was becoming worried. Her iPod was the only thing she wanted to keep with her.

"Rose, open this door, goddamnit, or I will break it open!" Tony pounded on the door harder

"God, Tony, what is your problem!" She jerked open the door. Tony brushed past her and went straight to the nightstand. "What are you looking for?" Her voice was demanding. Tony was shuffling through drawers eagerly. Opening one, he grabbed something. Standing up, he left the room in a hurry. "Goddamnit" A sharp pain erupted in her side as she rushed after him.

She tried to keep up with him, but he was going to fast. After losing him on the fourth curve, she gave up and leaned against the wall. A stitch was forming in her side, causing her breath to come in gasps. Tony had run off with something from her room.

"Ma'am? Are you alright?" An agent asked. Holding up one finger she gasped, using the other to hold her side. The pain was unimaginable.

"Take- " She let out a strangled moan "Me to- augh- Loki" She choked out.

"Ma'am you need to get to the hospital wing." The agent said.

Mustering up some strength, she stood straighter. "GET LOKI" She bellowed, sinking down the side of the wall. Black spots danced across her vision.

Moments later, Loki walked into the hallway. The blackness encroached her vision, making it hard to see. "Oh, Darling, what's wrong?" He asked worriedly, kneeling beside her.

"Ruknaar- my dreams" She fought off the blackness. "He branded me.." Succumbing to the darkness was easy, all she had to do was close her eyes.

When her eyes fluttered open, she was laying in a hospital bed. Sitting up she noticed Loki slumped in a chair in the corner. She vaguely wondered how he could sleep with the heartbeat monitor. Hissing in pain, she decided to lay back down. Turning her attention back to Loki, she smiled. He looked peaceful in his slumber.

"He looks peaceful, does he not?" Thor said in a low tone. "He has not left the room." She frowned at him.

"What happened to me?"

"You passed out from sheer exhaustion." Thor supplied. She shook her head. Her side had hurt way to much to be just exhaustion. It was hurting her now, only a dull ache though.

"Rüknaar branded me. Why did Loki not tell you this?" She demanded.

"Loki has not spoken, only to refuse food and drink." Thor said, sitting in the chair opposite Loki. "Someone else has visited you recently. His name is Brian." She shrank down in fear at his name.

"Tell him not to come anymore." She replied shakily.

"I thought he was courting you. It is what Loki seems to think." Thor said. An aroma filled the room. It was a mashup of different scents, but it had a pleasant air to it. She shook her head no.

"How many times has he come here?" She asked timidly.

"A few times." Thor responded. "He has always lay beside you." She shuddered. Brian laying next to her was an eerie thought. "Rose, I apologize for my behavior. You should not be held accountable for what your ancestors did."

"Let's not talk about that. How long has he been sleeping?" She shot a questioning glance toward Loki.

"A few hours. He has been awake most of the time. You have been here for two days." Thor stated, standing up. He pushed open the door, stopping only to smile at her. "I must go see Jane."

Loki fell into a dream-like state, not completely awake but not completely asleep. A state of meditation, if you will. He was searching the caverns of his mind, completely aware of everything around him. He often retreated to what he called his 'mindplace' when he was in deep thought and needed to solve something. In this case, he needed to examine the weird feelings he got when he was around Rose.

"I wasn't kissing Brian in the elevator." He heard her say. The corners of his mouth tugged into a small smile. This information brought him a small satisfaction which quickly turned into an unidentifiable emotion. He wanted to strangle the mortal who had laid in her bed and forced kisses upon her. He dismissed the emotion as wanting to protect Stark's daughter.

He thought up a palace for him to place all of his emotions, ridding himself of the weird feelings. He sorted through facts in the vast white space, placing certain tidbits into piles. The symbols burned into her skin still hadn't gone away, meaning they were made from ice. Tony had reviewed all security footage which only showed an empty hallway. While the girl was asleep he had searched through her mind. Finding only fragments of dreams, he stopped looking. She had forcefully pushed the memories of her kidnapping and bad memories out of her head, leaving only her scars to remind her of her past. Sure, if he rooted into the depths of her mind he could find them, but that would cause her physical pain.

"I want a tattoo." Rose suddenly burst out, drawing him out of his mind place. His eyes snapped open and he looked at her curiously.

"What of?" he asked.

"I don't know." She responded.

"Well then, why do you want a tattoo?" He asked her

"I don't know. I just want it to mean something." She said, staring at her hands.

"Why do it? You're going to be dead anyway." Maybe a bit too sociopathic.

"I guess there's no reason, sentimentality I suppose." She said, lacing her nimble hands together. Her face looked pale and gaunt. She looked sick.

"Hmmmm.. Interesting." He said, tapping his fingers together. "How is your side?" She glanced down to her side briefly.

"Fine. I can barely feel it." Her tell showed. Blinking rapidly.

"Anybody come into your room that you remember?" He inquired. Only someone who knew what she was would know to use ice.

"No." She frowned.

"Miss Rose, Prince Loki, Tony wanted me to inform you that I am installed into the system." A British voice came on through the intercom.

"Thank you Jarvis." He said, not taking his eyes off of the girl. The doctors had forcefully taken her contact out, the eye becoming an icy blue. It had streaks of green, showing her internal struggle to fend it off. His gut twisted knowing he did this to her. He had to of, there was no other way she could have gotten that.

"So, Loki, why are you on earth? Shouldn't you be rotting in a cell?" She sounded casual.

"Me and my brother are fugitives, we escaped Asgard when Malekith, the leader of the Dark Elves attacked." He listed the facts unemotionally. "We came here seeking refuge. Odin has no idea where we are, neither does Heimdall."

"Oh." She breathed. "I'm so sorry, I feel like a complete jerk. I'm so sorry" She gushed

"You have nothing to be sorry for." Immediate response. He didn't know why she was apologizing. He frowned at the IV in her arm, giving her a dose of morphine. After a minute her eyes fluttered and she muttered something unintelligible before drifting off. Getting up, he covered her in blankets before planting a kiss on her forehead. It was an action based on instinct and it came natural to him. "Goodnight, Darling." He muttered, flicking the lights off before leaving.

After Rose got out of the hospital, they fell into a sort of groove. He would wake up, drag Rose to breakfast and then they would sit in the library for hours on end. After, he would go to his room while she would wander. They grew close, as one was not seen without the other. The team took note of this, but otherwise ignored Loki's strange behavior.

Loki picked up on some of Rose's little habits and quirks, such as tapping her fingers restlessly and knowing when she was upset or bored. Rose had a sort of attachment to him. He grew to enjoy the girl's constant company. Loki often had to force the girl to go to sleep. Her appearances slowly slipped away. Rose's hair became a rat's nest of matted locks. As the 21st drew near it became harder for Loki to draw the girl out of her room.

Loki paced outside of Rose's room. He was having trouble drawing her out of the confines of her room. None of the other Avengers wanted to get attached to her. Knocking lightly on her door, he grumbled in frustration. He turned the knob and let himself into her room.

Rose sat in the corner of the room, hiding from the sunlight streaming in. "No breakfast today?" He inquired, sitting next to her. She shook her head slightly. Frowning at her mess of hair, he got up and grabbed the brush from her bedside table. He sat on the bed, patting the space on the floor. She scooted towards him, resting herself between his knees. Loki ran the brush through her hair, unknotting the raven strands. After all of the tangles were out, he carefully arranged her hair in a feather braid.

"Do you want to go to the library?" He asked as she leaned back. She shook her head slightly. "Well what do you want to do?" He asked. Again she shook her head. He had become patient with her.

"Not die." She said dryly. Loki could see through her façade. She really did not want to die. He wrapped her in a hug.

"I know" He whispered. She looked up at him with her mismatched eyes. They had dark circles under them, a result of not sleeping. He knew that she didn't sleep and it bothered him. "You look tired." He stated, pulling her up on the bed.

"The nightmares." She responded. "They never go away." She drew her knees up to her chin.

"I will keep them at bay." He responded, laying his fingertips on her forehead. Rose leaned into his touch subconsciously.

"Do you think I will meet Hela?" She whispered as she curled under the blankets. Loki looked at her for a moment, searching for a response. Most midgaurdians did go to Hel, contrary to popular belief.

"Maybe." he respond as Rose closed her eyes. Deciding to let her sleep, he made his way out of the room.

"Stay, please." She muttered sleepily.

"Ok." He said softly, turning around. Rose looked utterly broken. His hard features softened. Sitting down on her bed, he stretched his legs out. She scooted closer in her sleepy daze, most likely unaware that she was doing so. Loki stiffened for a moment before relaxing. Rose had already drifted off and he reached over and turned the light out, drifting off along with Rose.


End file.
